Montreal comedians divided on Chris Rock's right to 'cross the line' in wake of Will Smith's Oscars slap

The most talked-about moment of Sunday night's 94th Academy Awards left Montreal comic Renzel Dashington speechless.

"To be honest, I'm not even sure that actually happened. I'm still in shock."

Dashington, along with spectators around the world, watched in disbelief as the winner of the Oscar for best actor, Will Smith, strode on stage and slapped presenter and stand-up comic, Chris Rock, after Rockmade a joke at the expense of Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.

The slap heard around the world sparked a heated debateon social media, with many denouncing Smith's violent reaction, others supporting him for standing up for Pinkett Smith, and some calling into question the limits of comedy.

But for Dashington, a well-knownMontreal comedian and owner of the Bad Boys du Rire comedy club, the art form knows no limits.

"As a comedian, in order for you to be the best at what we do, you need to allow yourself the space to cross the line consistently," he said.

Dashington said hepersonally tends to be unapologetic in his comedy.

"I don't want to hurt anyone. I think most people that do what I do don't want to hurt anyone, but a joke is always laughing at the expense of something or someone."

WATCH| Renzel Dashington says comedians have to push boundaries with jokes

'Everyone reaches their breaking point,' says Montreal comedian Eva Alexo

3 years ago

Duration 0:59

Eva Alexo, a local comedian, says Will Smith's reaction to Chris Rock's joke was understandable, given how much Smith's been ridiculed on social media.

Pinkett Smith has for years been open about her struggles withhair loss caused by alopecia. Rock took a swipe at her shaved head while on stage to present the award for best documentary, prompting Smith's surpriseconfrontation.

Eva Alexo, a Montreal comedian and co-creator and producer of the MontrealEnglish comedyshow, The Kickback,says while Sunday night's violence was uncalled for, she understands Smith's emotional reactionto the joke.

The ridiculing of Smith and his wife on social media has beenwell-documented.

"As a comedian, I will say that [the slap]was a lot at first glance;as a human being,Iwill say there is always context, and everyone reaches their breaking point," said Alexo.

"It's really easy for us to look at celebritiesand judge them and say they have no right to have feelings because they have all of this money, but they probably get cyberbullied more than the average person."

WATCH | Eva Alexo explains why she understood Will Smith's reaction to joke:

Alexosaidit's important for comedians to change with the times. She saidthere is a limit to some of the topics that areconsidered funny in 2022.

"Comedyis supposed to be about healing and finding the light inreally dark situationsand making people feel better about that or relatable to you," she said.

"It is not my place to talk about something that I don't know about."

Rock showed professionalism, comics agree

What Dashington and Alexodo agree on, however, is Rock's demeanour post-slap, touting his professionalism.

"That was the greatest night in the history of television," Rock joked before going back to presenting the award for best documentary.

Dashington said if he were in Rock's position, he would have pressed charges against Smith.

"I wouldn'tgive anyone the latitude to think that that'sappropriate behaviour because you didn't like something I said," he said.

Bruce Hills,president of Montreal comedy festJust For Laughs, shared Dashington's sentiment, taking to Twitter to decrythe lack of consequences for Smith after the attack.

Montreal comedian Mike Ward, who was found by the Supreme Court of Canadalast year not to have breached the limits of free speechfor routinely mocking a disabled child singer as part of his comedy act, referred in a tweet to Rock's bit as "an innocent joke."

The limit of free speech is acommon debate in the comedy world, Alexosaid. She says as a stand-up comic, she is all about expressing yourself, but she draws the line at mockingother people's trauma.

"It's not my life experience. It's not my story....And it's not something I will do."